JPMorgan and Santander will lead a major fundraising operation for Argentina LNG, according to a Bloomberg report citing unnamed sources. The total financing could reach $15 billion, with project partners aiming to make a final investment decision by November, the publication reported. The Argentina LNG project is a partnership between Italy's Eni, Argentinian state energy company YPF, and Emirati firm XRG.
The facility will be constructed on Argentina's Atlantic coast with an initial annual production capacity of 12 million tons of liquefied natural gas, with potential to ramp up to 18 million tons in future phases. The project carries a total estimated cost of $24 billion, which exceeds Argentina's loan agreement with the International Monetary Fund, valued at $20 billion. The development will include two floating liquefaction trains, two cross-country pipelines, and a natural gas liquids production plant.
Given that LNG projects frequently exceed their original budgets, the final cost could be even higher. The Argentina LNG venture will source natural gas from the Vaca Muerta shale formation, which possesses the world's second-largest technically recoverable shale gas reserves after the United States' Marcellus formation. According to project partners, Argentina as a whole has the potential to eventually produce 24 million tons of liquefied gas annually.
Vaca Muerta has already positioned Argentina as the fourth-largest oil producer in Latin America, a ranking that may improve as the government prioritizes energy industry development and infrastructure projects designed to increase production capacity from the shale play. Current natural gas output stands at 5.5 billion cubic feet daily, approaching the all-time high of 5.7 billion cubic feet daily recorded in July 2025. The Vaca Muerta formation contains estimated natural gas resources of approximately 308 trillion cubic feet.
Source: oilprice.com